Dividend Magic

Saving and Investing towards Financial Independence in Malaysia

Credit Cards

Best credit cards in Malaysia: Earn cashback & air miles with a hybrid strategy

By
Filed Under: Credit Cards, FI/RE, Financial Independence, Financial/Life Hacks 18

In today’s fast-paced financial world, choosing the best credit cards can mean unlocking rewards that not only ease your everyday expenses but also pave the way for your dream travel destinations. I personally think that credit cards are a great companion in one’s financial journey. You just have to make sure that you make prompt and punctual payments every month. You do not want to pay the 18% p.a. interest that comes with late payments.

If you struggle with self-discipline and all you see in a new credit card is more spending, there is no need to read on. Stick with your debit card, e-wallets and cash. However, if like me, you see credit cards as a smart way to defer payments and enjoy a month of interest-free benefits, then keep reading!

A small note is that ALL credit cards are charged RM25 SST by the government per card. This is a given and there are no two ways about it.

My credit card strategy – RM5K spending a month

CIMB Visa Infinite – I consolidate the bulk of my spending here. And when I hit RM5K per month, I get additional bonus points.

AMEX Maybank 2 Cards – I aim to spend at max RM1K a month here on weekends only to take advantage of their 5% weekend cashback. Mostly on petrol and shopping on weekends.

Alliance Visa Infinite – I use this to top RM3K into my e-wallet. Shopee Pay mostly and TnG (1% fee). Maxing this out every month can net me a round trip to nearby countries once a year – think Thailand, Singapore or Indonesia.

I have more details on the above 3 cards I use, and more down below. Feel free to customise and pick the best cards for yourself.

The best way to earn and rack up credit card points WITHOUT going into debt

Let me emphasize that you should not be looking to get too many cards and you should ALWAYS pay your credit card debt on time. You should all know that credit card’s late payment interest is the highest, which is why you settle them first.

The best way to rack up credit card points without going into debt is to treat your credit card like a debit card and only spend what you can afford to pay off in full each month.

Here’s how you can maximize points while staying financially responsible, remember these 10 golden rules:

1. Use your Credit Card for everyday expenses

  • Use your credit card for expenses you would have paid in cash or with a debit card anyway.
  • e.g. Pay for groceries, dining, petrol, utilities, and subscriptions with your credit card.

2. Always pay in full and on time

  • Avoid interest charges by paying your balance in full before the due date.
  • A good idea is to set up auto payments to avoid late fees.

3. Optimize bonus categories

  • Choose a card that rewards your spending habits (e.g., cashback and air miles – more on this strategy later).
  • Some cards offer 5X points on dining and travel while others focus on cashback for shopping or fuel.

4. Stack rewards and promotions

  • Use credit card promos, cashback apps, and e-wallets to double-dip on rewards.
  • Pay via ShopeePay, GrabPay, or Boost if they offer extra points for top-ups (e.g. Alliance Visa Infinite, Affin DUO Visa)

5. Take advantage of welcome bonuses

  • Many cards offer sign-up bonuses if you hit a spending target within the first few months.
  • If you were planning a big purchase, time it with a new card application. Look no further than websites like RinggitPlus and CompareHero.

6. Pay bills and large purchases with your card

  • Consider using your card for insurance, rent, or tuition fees, if there are no extra fees.
  • Some banks allow you to earn points when paying government bills via their online portals.

7. Use supplementary cards wisely

  • If you have family members, get them supplementary cards to earn points faster.
  • Ensure they follow the same pay-in-full policy to avoid unnecessary debt.

8. Convert points into valuable rewards

  • Redeem points for air miles, cashback, or travel perks (make sure you do the math and not just redeem random RM10 vouchers).
  • Some cards allow you to transfer points to airline or hotel loyalty programs for better value.

9. Be strategic with multiple cards

  • Use different cards for different spending categories (e.g., one for travel, one for dining).
  • Ensure you track your spending so you don’t overspend chasing points.

10. Avoid cash advances & unnecessary fees

  • Never withdraw cash as an advance from your credit card—it incurs high interest and fees.
  • Be mindful of annual fees and only pay if the perks outweigh the cost.

A sidenote – Maybank 2 Cards Premier AMEX Reserve is the worst card to have now

I’ve spent the past week researching ways to restructure my finances and optimize my credit card usage. I talked about my Maybank 2 Cards Premier previously here and even touted the cards as the best card for air miles.

They’ve since fallen from grace and are not worth it anymore. If you did not already know, Maybank has recently implemented a shared monthly quota of 100 million air miles across the board for ALL their users. The quota is often exhausted within minutes of the new month. This is ridiculous and no one is happy about staying up on the 31st and waiting for the clock to strike midnight to convert their friggin miles.

I foresee Maybank slowly increasing the 100 million point cap but it may be too late as everyone I know has moved to greener pastures. We’ll get to which card would be best for air miles in a bit, but let’s talk about cashback first as I believe that should be a priority.

The hybrid approach – Comparing the best credit cards for cashback and air miles

We will look at a few criteria for credit cards.

  1. Annual fee and waiver requirement
  2. Income requirement (no exorbitant invite-only cards for the ultra-rich etc)
  3. Cashback rate and point conversion rate
  4. Lounge access and travel insurance
  5. Recommended way to use said card and other terms and conditions

The best credit cards in Malaysia for Cashback

Maybank 2 Gold/Platinum Cards Review – Best Maybank Credit Card

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for life
Income requirement: RM30,000 (gold) or RM60,000 (platinum) p.a.
Cashback rate: 5% (RM50 monthly cap)
Point conversion rate: 5x TreatsPoints for spending with AMEX, 1x TreatsPoints for spending with Visa/Master
Travel insurance: Coverage of up to RM700,000 when you charge your travel tickets in full (make sure to read the terms of the insurance in full and what it covers specifically)

Alright, so this one here has always been the OG and holy grail of cashback credit cards. Maybank 2 Gold Card is often considered the best entry-level credit card here in Malaysia. Also, there is no difference between the Gold and Platinum other than the fact that you get a higher credit limit with the Platinum. You get two cards from Maybank here – 1x AMEX and 1x Visa/Mastercard. We’ll mostly be looking at the AMEX card as it gives you the cashback and most points.

Previously, there have been cases where cardholders only activated their AMEX and left their Visa/Master dormant to avoid paying the RM25 SST on both cards. And as of 2018, we are unable to do this anymore.

“If the card is not activated within 3 months, the Service Tax will be imposed on the 3rd month.”

best credit cards in malaysia Maybank 2 cards AMEX SST

So be prepared to pay RM50 in SST to the government for both cards. Fret not though, read on and you’ll realise that the benefits outweigh the RM50 charge.

First and foremost, Maybank does not charge you any fees for both cards, it is free for life without any conditions. I plan to keep this card for life and never cancel it unless Maybank starts messing around with the fees or cashback.

With the Maybank 2 Cards AMEX, you get a guaranteed 5% cashback and 5X TreatsPoints.
A few things to note:

  • You get the 5% cashback only on weekends
  • There is a cap of RM50 per month. This means a maximum spending of RM1,000 per month.
  • You get 5X TreatsPoints if you use it during weekdays
  • No cash back for transactions related to government, utility bills and eWallets top-up.

I plan to use the AMEX for the following expenses:

  • Petrol (Petronas)
  • Accommodation (hotels, Airbnb etc)
  • Telco (CelcomDigi)
  • Grab food – pay direct instead of top up to GrabPay

Of course, I’ll do my best to swipe the AMEX only on weekends for the cashback. The above expenses should get me to RM1,000 spend every month to get RM50 in cashback. Get used to asking every cashier and merchant you meet – “Do you accept AMEX?”
You’ll be surprised that many actually do.

Maybank Islamic Ikhwan American Express Platinum Card-i Review

best credit cards in malaysia Maybank Islamic Ikhwan AMEX Platinum Card-i

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for life
Income requirement: RM40,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: 8% (RM50 monthly cap, RM100 cap for Ramadhan and Syawal months)
Point conversion rate: 1X TreatsPoints for Gov Utilities, Education etc. (see above image)

This is an excellent card for ONLINE spending. You get 8% cashback with a cap of RM50 per month (RM100 on Ramadhan and Syawal months). It is free for life as well.

I plan to use this solely for online transactions – Shopee, Lazada and Grab. Make sure you’re using the AMEX as a payment method and not to top up. I’ll be using the previously mentioned Maybank 2 Cards AMEX for over-the-counter transactions and then Ikhwan AMEX for online ones. The monthly spending cap is just RM625 per month to reach RM50 in cashback.

We’ll focus solely on the card’s cashback prowess and set aside TreatsPoints, which fall short compared to those offered by the Maybank 2 Card AMEX. However, if you have sizable government bills, the Ikhwan AMEX provides 1X TreatsPoints for government transactions—making it a smart choice for those specific payments.

AFFIN DUO Visa Cash Back Review

best credit cards in malaysia AFFIN DUO Visa Cash Back

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for the first 3 years. (RM75, subsequently waived with 12 retail transactions)
Income requirement: RM24,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: 3% (RM30 monthly cap)
Point conversion rate: Not worth looking into

Look at the t&c and you’ll find that this is the card that gives you cashback for e-wallet top-ups! And we’ll be opting for the Visa Duo and not the Mastercard.

Since I won’t be spending heavily on this card, I’ll only qualify for the RM30 monthly cashback instead of RM50—which requires a minimum spend of RM3,000. I’ll primarily use the card for e-wallet top-ups (which will yield a net gain) and for my monthly insurance auto billing. Together, these transactions should total RM1,000, hitting the RM30 monthly cashback cap.

UOB ONE Card Review

best credit cards in malaysia UOB ONE Card

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for the first year. (RM120 subsequently years)
Income requirement: RM24,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: up to 10% (RM10 monthly cap per category)
Point conversion rate: Not worth looking into

One of the best credit cards out there, the UOB ONE Card has a few categories eligible for 10% cashback, with a monthly cap of RM10 for each category. You’ve got to hit >RM500 minimum spend per month to qualify. Categories include:

  • Petrol – 10% cashback
  • Groceries – 10% cashback
  • Dining – 10% cashback
  • Grab – 10% cashback
  • Other Retail Spend – 0.2% cashback

Note: There is a higher tier card called UOB ONE Platinum Card which has a higher cashback cap of RM15 per month and monthly minimum spend of >RM1,500. The income requirement is RM60,000 p.a.

RHB Shell Visa Card Review

best credit cards in malaysia RHB Shell Visa Credit Card

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for the first year. (RM195, subsequently waived with 24 swipes)
Income requirement: RM24,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: up to 12% (RM50 monthly cap per category)
Point conversion rate: Not worth looking into

If your go-to petrol station in Malaysia is Shell, then this is one of the best credit cards for you. With a monthly spend of >RM2,500 on your card, you get a maximum of 12% cashback (RM50 monthly cap). Spending RM417 on your petrol per month would get you to the RM50 cap.

Hitting >RM2,500 monthly spend, you also qualify for 5% cashback (another RM50 monthly cap) on the following:

  • Groceries
  • Online Spend
  • E-wallet reload
  • Utilities

Spending another RM417 on the above categories will get you to the other RM50 cap as well. This leaves you with RM1,666 left to spend and getting only 0.2%. I didn’t like that I’d have to waste the RM1,666 leftover. This is a pretty good card if you’re willing to spend >RM2,500 on this card alone. You could potentially get RM100 in monthly cashback with this card. Not too shabby at all.

Bank Islam Visa Platinum Credit Card-i Review

best credit cards in malaysia Bank Islam Visa Platinum, Visa Infinite, Visa Gold Review

Link to apply

Annual fee: RM388 – waived with 12 swipes in a year
Income requirement: RM36,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: 3% – 5% (RM30 monthly cap)
Point conversion rate: Not worth looking into

Bank Islam has some pretty good credit cards lined up. We’ll take a look at the more attainable Bank Islam Visa Platinum Credit Card-i. You get a 3% cashback on spending between RM500 – RM1,499. Anything above RM1,500 and you’re eligible for 5%.

What I don’t like about this arrangement is that you only get cashback above a certain spending and that’s a big no for me. But otherwise, the cashback is pretty straightforward to reach and it’s a pretty good cashback %.

Bank Islam’s card is not the best credit card out there and is a hit-or-miss for me. I’d go for the other cards mentioned above for cashback.
Also, as it is an Islamic card, you’re prohibited from certain merchants.

best credit cards in malaysia Bank Islam Visa Platinum, Visa Infinite, Visa Gold Review

The best credit cards in Malaysia for Airmiles

Alliance Bank Visa Infinite Review

best credit cards in malaysia Alliance Bank Visa Infinite Card

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for the first year. (RM438, subsequently waived with minimum spend of RM12,000 p .a.)
Income requirement: RM60,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: No cashback
Point conversion rate: 15,000 TBP for 1,000 Enrich Miles. RM2-3 – 1 Enrich Mile
Lounge access: 2X complimentary access to Plaza Premium lounge, 1X access to Travel Club lounge. Principal cardholders only

After talking about all the best credit cards for cashback, it is now time to look at air miles. Below are the Timeless Bonus Points (TBP) given for every RM1 spent.

  • 8X TBP – online shopping and e-wallet reload (RM3,000 cap, 1X TBP after)
  • 5X TBP – Dining, groceries and overseas transactions
  • 1X TBP – contactless transactions, entertainment, auto-billing, and other retail transactions (including Instalment Payment Plan, Flexi Payment Plan, JomPay and FPX transactions)

At its peak optimisation, the Alliance Visa Infinite card will convert 1 Enrich Point for every RM1.875 spent online.

Why this card? Not every merchant accepts AMEX, and the previous three cards come with monthly cashback caps. The Alliance Visa Infinite will act as my filler card, given that Visa is accepted almost everywhere. I’ll use this card for all other categories—places that don’t accept AMEX, like food, accommodation, parking, and more. You get the idea.

Now, this is by far not the best card for airmiles but it fits my strategy and needs. One of the best for miles is actually below – Maybank’s Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer AMEX Platinum Card.

CIMB Preferred Visa Infinite

CIMB Preferred Visa Infinite

Link to apply

CIMB Preferred Visa Infinite Points and Bonus Points

Note: auto-debit/recurring transactions do not count towards points.

Annual fee: Free for life (as long as RM250K AUM is maintained to remain a CIMB Preferred client)
Income requirement: Nil. You just need the RM250K parked with CIMB
Cashback rate: No cashback
Point conversion rate: RM2 – 1 Mile
Lounge access: 8X unconditional access to Plaza Premium lounge including for supplementary cardholders. Special access to prestigious lounges like Plaza Premium First in Malaysia.

This is one of the best cards in terms of Premium Plaza Lounge access. They have campaigns too where you can earn 35,000 bonus points by meeting a few conditions. If you’re eligible and have RM250K to park with a bank, then by all means, go for it.

Also, if you’re spending RM10K a month consistently, this will be the card to charge all your expenses too. But I think for the average Malaysian, RM10K a month in spending is a little high. So if you’re like me and spend maybe close to RM5K a month, look at CIMB’s Visa Infinite below.

CIMB Visa Infinite

CIMB Visa Infinite

Link to apply

CIMB Visa Infinite Points Bonus Points

Note: auto-debit/recurring transactions count towards points!

Annual fee: Waived
Income requirement: RM60,000 per annum
Cashback rate: No cashback
Point conversion rate: RM2.5 – 1 Mile
Lounge access: 5X access to Plaza Premium lounge (NOT for supplementary cardholders). Spending of RM60,000 required.

This is the card I’m using as my monthly spending is in the range of RM5K – 6K.
To keep things simple, I consolidate the bulk of my spending here.

Maybank Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer AMEX Platinum Card Review

best credit cards in malaysia Maybank Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer AMEX Platinum Card

Link to apply

Annual fee: Free for the first year. (RM300 for subsequently years)
Income requirement: RM60,000 p.a.
Cashback rate: No cashback
Point conversion rate: RM2-2.5 – 1 KrisFlyer Mile
Lounge access: 5X complimentary access to Plaza Premium lounge

With this card, the biggest benefit by far is that you bypass Maybank’s ridiculous monthly 100 million miles cap that ALL their cardholders face. With this card, your Krisflyer miles are credited directly to your KrisFlyers account every month.

If you’re into miles, this card here would top the list for me. However, I decided not to sign up because after using my Maybank 2 Cards AMEX and Ikhwan AMEX, I wouldn’t have much left over to maximize this card’s benefits. I prioritize cashback first, and then any additional spending goes towards earning miles.

To keep it simple—following my hybrid strategy—if you’ve maxed out spending on your cashback cards and still have extra funds to spend, this card is an excellent option. Personally, I chose the Alliance Visa Infinite instead to serve as my filler card.

The 4 best credit cards in Malaysia – 2025 hybrid strategy

I spend an estimated RM5K per month using my credit cards. And these are the best credit cards that fit my hybrid strategy.

  1. Maybank 2 platinum cards AMEX – 5% cashback (RM1,000 spending)
    Petrol, accommodation, telco, Grab (weekends only)
  2. Maybank Islamic Ikhwan American Express Platinum Card-i – 8% cashback (RM625 spending)
    Government transactions and online spending – Lazada, Shopee
  3. AFFIN DUO Visa Cash Back – 3% cashback (RM1,000 spending)
    E-wallet reload and insurance auto-billing
  4. Alliance Bank Visa Infinite – Filler card for everything else
    Food, accommodation, parking, meta ads top-up etc. Anywhere that doesn’t accept AMEX.

These 4 cards make up my hybrid strategy. If you’ve got any ideas or suggestions that will help, please feel free to comment and let me know how I can improve and up my credit card game. Would genuinely love to be able to improve and let everyone know at the same time.

If you’re exploring credit cards, you might also be interested in Premier Banking in Malaysia. Discover the best Premier Banking options from Malaysian banks here.

As always, follow my Facebook and Instagram to keep up to date!

Watsons Malaysia – How to get Cashback

By
Filed Under: Credit Cards, Financial/Life Hacks 0

This article is authored and brought to you by one of our long-time readers – Alan Toh.

I did some minor editing. Enjoy!

Shopping for personal care products, skincare, cosmetics, and health supplements

Surely all of us have been to Watsons’ chain of pharmacies at some point in our lives. Be it to purchase personal care products, skincare, cosmetics or health supplements. And who wouldn’t like to receive cashback for all these purchases?

Well, I am here to introduce – the ULTIMATE guide to earn cashback from all of our purchases from Watsons’ .

Method 1 – Watsons’ VIP Membership

One may think that this is a pretty straightforward way of earning points for every RM spent by just simply flashing the Watsons’ VIP membership card (or phone number registered with the membership) upon checkout at the cashier. You’re wrong.

As the Watson’s VIP Membership card comes with a built-in Touch n Go feature, users are encouraged to pay for their purchases at Watsons’ with Touch n Go by giving out very generous points multiplication.

Right now, for every RM paid with the Watsons’ VIP – Touch n Go card, users will be rewarded with 10x the points.

As an example, or every RM20 spent with the card, users will receive 200 points, equivalent to RM1 in cash value. That in itself is a generous 5% cashback (uncapped, of course). Not only that, Users can be rewarded with an additional 5x – 10x points for some selected products (just look for the tags on the aisles at Watsons).

Of course, in order to use the Watsons VIP membership card’s Touch n Go feature for payment, you need to have sufficient balance in the card. The card can either be reloaded without any fees at any Watson’s store using cash or with a credit card (note: accumulate credit card cashback or rewards points for every top-up performed) at any of the locations. You may double-confirm the locations hERE.

In conclusion, not only do we get rewarded with Watsons’ VIP points worth between 5% – 7% in cashback, we would also be able to collect credit card cashback or rewards points as well. That could mean about 10% worth of cashback for our shopping at Watsons.

If you take a look at the example above of a purchase that I recently made using my Watsons’ VIP membership card, you can see that I received 6248 VIP points for my purchase of RM472.45. The value of the points received is worth RM31.24, which translates to a cashback value of 6.6%. In other words, I get to use the points earned for my next purchase at Watsons’, saving me a total of RM31.24 in value.

As of Jan 2020, Watsons’ may have reverted the 10x points to 5x.

Method 2 – BOOST Your Purchases

The second option would be to use Boost to pay for your purchase at Watsons’ store. The cashback reward for this method would usually turn out to be lower than the first method, but if reloading Touch n Go is a bit of a hassle for you (or if you are one who owns a credit card which rewards cash back for online purchases), then Boost is the way to go for.

The method here is fairly simple though, you’ve got to reload your Boost with a credit card (note: DO NOT use a Maybank Card to reload as you will not receive any reward), then flash your Watsons’ VIP Membership card together with your Boost QR code for payment upon checkout.

Remember to shake your Boost for coins (it’s the only way you would receive cashback from Boost). The typical cashback amount you would receive from Boost is between 2.2% – 8.8% depending on your luck with the Bonus coins reward and your Boost level. On top of that, you would receive up to 5% cashback from your credit card (usually capped at RM50 per card) and the usual 1 VIP point per RM spent from your Watsons’ VIP membership card (equivalent to 0.5% of cashback).

All in all, you may receive up to 18.8% of cashback using this method (up to 6.6% from Boost, up to 5% from credit card and up to 5% from Watsons’ VIP membership card if the item rewards with 10x points) if lady luck is on your side.

Method 3 – Mother of all Cash-Backs with Touch n Go eWallet

The final method, which could probably be the BEST method for earning cash back from Watsons’ store would be payments made using Touch n Go eWallet. You see, Touch n Go eWallet would occasionally collaborate with Watson’s to reward users with the Ultimate cashback of up to 16% (yes, you heard right, Watson’s and Touch n Go eWallet would give you RM8 in cashback for a minimum spending of RM50 and above in a single receipt).

Bear in mind though, each Touch n Go eWallet user is entitled to receive this cashback only ONCE throughout the campaign period and to make matters worse, the RM8 cashback is only limited to the first 25,000 transactions at all Watsons’ stores. So if you would like to earn up to 16% + up to 5% cashback for your purchases of RM50, then be sure to be one of the earliest to pay with your Touch n Go eWallet for your purchase at Watsons’.

Do keep in mind that the cashback from Touch n Go eWallet is capped at RM8 for purchase of RM50 and above in a single receipt, so try to use a combination of payment methods if your purchase amount is higher than RM50 in order to maximize the amount of cashback you could receive.

Watsons’ new campaign as of 2 Jan 2020 – 26 Feb 2020 is RM8 cashback for a RM60 minimum spend.

Bonus Money Saving Pro-Tip

Occasionally, Watsons’ would give out RM5 cash vouchers during their own campaign period, which is claimable the following week after the end of their campaign period. These vouchers would entitle customers to get RM5 off for purchases of RM50 and above in a single receipt. That is another massive 10% rebate on top of all the cash backs above!

End.

The amount may be a little small for some of you but cashback is cashback to me. Also, TnG’s eWallet is one of the most worthwhile ones out there currently.

Thank you again Alan.

A list of recommendations and stuff I use can be found hERE.
As always, Facebook and Instagram. Follow, keep up to date.

Maybank 2 Cards Premier – Best Air-miles Card

By
Filed Under: Travel, food and the finer things in life, Credit Cards, Other, Other Investments 15

There are two components to Maybank 2 Cards. You get a Visa / Mastercard and an American Express card. 2 cards.

The card we will want to focus on is the Amex card, as it gives 5x Treatspoints per RM1 spent whereas the Visa / Master gives 2x Treatspoints.

To keep it simple – You spend as much as you can with your Amex. The Visa / Master is the fallback card for places that don’t accept Amex.

You can check for the latest promos and register for Maybank cards hERE.

Cashback vs Air-miles

First off, if you’re new to the world of credit cards, allow me to explain. To me, credit cards for the first 10 years of my life were about cashback. I have since yesterday, switched to air-miles mode.

I’ve done the research, I’ve done the numbers. You get a better bang for your buck with the air-miles approach. A caveat: Your spending will need to be in the above the RM36K per annum range.

How to get Maybank 2 Cards Premier

Maybank recently revised the minimum income required for their Maybank 2 Cards Premier to RM100K per annum. Even if you don’t fulfill this requirement, I’ll tell you how you can still get them cards.

I was a little short on the income front. Maybank doesn’t care about your dividend income.

I spoke to my relationship manager in the bank and to my surprise, a simple FD pledge would allow me to get the Premier cards.

So, if you’re short on the income/salary front, talk to someone in the bank. This is not a foolproof method and it goes on a case-by-case basis.

Also to note, if you’re planning on getting the 2 Cards Premier, your existing Treatspoints cannot be carried over. This is because the redemption rate is much more favourable to the premier cards.

Maybank 2 Cards Premier Annual Fees

Now, one last thing before you jump on the premier card bandwagon. Apart from the RM25 mandatory fee from the government, the premier cards have an annual fee of RM800.

The cards are free for the first year. For subsequent years, you’ll need to have an annual spending of RM80,000 to get the fee waived.

You know I’m frugal and there’s no way I have that much of an annual spending every year.

My strategy for this? I am utilizing the 4 free supplementary cards provided by the cards. Combining the spending of all cards should get me to RM80K a year. And yes, Maybank allows you to total up the spending per annum of the principal and supplementary cardholders.

What’s in it for the supplementary cardholders? Well, they get the same 2x or 5x treatspoints as you, the same redemption rate for air miles. Basically, everything is the same for them as supplementary cardholders!

I’ve got the first year to test this out. We’ll see how it goes.
I do solemnly swear that the RM80K target will not cause me to spend more than I usually do.

Meantime, do follow me on Instagram and on Facebook for updates.

End.

As I’m writing this, I feel an unexplainable urge to go on a rampage on the benefits of a credit card. As opposed to cash and debit cards. Instead, I’ll keep myself controlled for now and have a long-ass article on it soon.

I know most of you reading this are masters and sifus at optimising your credit cards. Please do let me know if you have better cards out there to recommend for air-miles and cashback for other readers.

You can check for the latest promos and register for Maybank cards hERE.